


For Times Gone By

by louissmyles



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: First Kiss, M/M, New Year's Eve, New York City
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-08
Updated: 2016-01-08
Packaged: 2018-05-12 13:50:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,319
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5668306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/louissmyles/pseuds/louissmyles
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Louis turned to face Harry, taking him in fully. His eyes were bright and open, his smile honest, like he’d never had a dark thought cross his mind, but his lips were a sinful pink, smooth and plump and probably just as soft as they looked. He had an innocence to his smile that outwardly made him seem like he’d never been broken before, but the worry lines on his forehead told the other side of that story, too deep and impressed into his skin to be anything but genuine. But his smile shined brighter even than the tales his face tried to tell.</p>
<p>“Who are you?” Louis asked.</p>
<p>“Harry Styles.”</p>
<p>“And?”</p>
<p>Harry shrugged, dropping his gaze to the floor. “And what?”</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Or, a lil slice of fic where Harry and Louis find each other in NYC for NYE when neither one of them should really be there and everyone has their own little story to tell in the lines of their faces.</p>
            </blockquote>





	For Times Gone By

**Author's Note:**

> A little NYE fic that's over a week late. But y'know. That's how I do most things. I still have a Christmas fic to post that I haven't even proof read yet. So... That should tell you about me as a person. 
> 
> Anyway, enjoy!

Everything is too loud and too bright and too crowded and Louis is just not drunk enough for this. 

“Why am I here?” He asked the general area around him, knowing his awful sister wouldn’t provide him with an answer he’d enjoy hearing. 

Lottie, twirling in place beside him with one of those ridiculous _Happy New Year_ hats on her head and a flute of champagne in her hand, sung out: “ _Because_ , Louis Tomlinson. You’re Mister Mopey Pants and I’m your Fairy God Sister and it is New Year’s Eve!” Lottie stopped spinning by way of crashing directly into the man beside her. “ _Oh!_ ” she steadied herself, “I’m so sorry! It was my brother. He pushed me. Blame him!” Lottie turned to Louis and pulled his hand hard until he found himself crashing into the same man. 

“ _Jesus_ , Lottie--” Louis tried to catch himself on the stranger’s arms but only succeeded in pulling him down to the street as well. “ _Oops_ ,” Louis hissed, realizing a bit too late that he was now _under_ said stranger. 

“Hi,” the man chuckled as he stood, holding a hand out for Louis to help him up. “How lovely to meet you both.”

“I’m so sorry! She’s not completely trained.” Louis frowned at the man’s hand but allowed himself to be righted. “I honestly don’t know how she convinced me to let her out of the house without a leash.” 

The man laughed, low and melodic and sweet. “I know how that can be. I’m here with someone similar.” He motioned over his shoulder and Louis glanced behind him to see a woman with her arms around Lottie, who was giggling uncontrollably. 

“Girlfriend?” Louis smiled. 

The man let out a surprised burst of laughter and Louis tried his hardest not to frown too obviously. “No. Alice and I play for exact opposite teams, unfortunately. It makes watching movies interesting, but sadly we’re both inept in offering advice for prospective partners.” 

The corner of Louis’s mouth quirked upwards. “And that means you’re both...”

“One-hundred percent gay. Unfortunately, or else we’d probably be married by now.”

“Speak for yourself, dirty martini.” The woman-Alice?-walked over and threw an arm around Harry’s shoulders, gripping Lottie’s hand tightly with her free hand. 

“Alice, this is--” the man’s eyebrows shot up, obviously realizing they never exchanged names. Louis smiled at his concerned expression. 

“Louis. I’m Louis.” 

“Louis’s my brother, you know,” Lottie whisper-yelled into Harry’s ear.

“Well. Hello, Louis. I’m Harry.” Harry grinned and offered his hand back out to Louis, who shook it firmly. 

“Nice to meet you Harry, Alice. Sorry about the trouble.” He blushed and reached for Lottie’s hand. “C’mon, Sparky.” 

“No!” Lottie side stepped him before latching herself more firmly onto Alice. “I like them. You can even have the cute tall one,” Lottie batted her eyelashes at Louis who looked at the way Lottie was gripping Alice’s hand like it was something she had only just found, but desperately needed. 

“Well... Okay?” Louis looked to Harry who seemed to mirror his expression. 

“Great! We’ll leave you two to get to know each other. Happy New Year, boys!” Alice called over her shoulder as she dragged Lottie further into the crowd until they were no longer visible. 

“Is Lottie...?” Harry looked to Louis. 

“Not that I’m aware of.”

“Well alright then.” Harry clapped his hands together. “Abandoned by our dates’s on this the most important of Eve’s, whatever are we to do?” Harry flashed Louis a grin and for the first time Louis noticed that Harry had one of those stupid hats on his head just like Lottie’s. However, on Harry’s head, stupid wasn’t the first word that came to mind. Adorable lingered a moment too long before Louis shook it away. 

“We could find them?” He suggested. 

“Or we could not.” 

Louis turned to face Harry, taking him in fully. His eyes were bright and open, his smile honest, like he’d never had a dark thought cross his mind, but his lips were a sinful pink, smooth and plump and probably just as soft as they looked. He had an innocence to his smile that outwardly made him seem like he’d never been broken before, but the worry lines on his forehead told the other side of that story, too deep and impressed into his skin to be anything but genuine. But his smile shined brighter even than the tales his face tried to tell. 

“Who are you?” Louis asked. 

“Harry Styles.” 

“And?” 

Harry shrugged, dropping his gaze to the floor. “And what?” 

“Why are you alone on New Year’s Eve, Harry Styles?” 

“I could ask you the same question, Louis...” 

“Tomlinson.” 

Harry met Louis’s eyes again. “Louis Tomlinson, then. Why are you alone tonight?” 

“I wasn’t. I was with my sister.” 

“But that’s not who you wanted to be with tonight.” Harry’s smile turned sad, his eyes dimming with it. 

Louis sucked in a sharp breath. “I-” 

“You don’t have to tell me.” A moment passed, Harry cleared his throat.“Alice’s ex-girlfriend called her this morning to tell her about a world tour she’s going on. Sixth months, four countries. This whole big deal.” Harry shrugged his shoulders and played with the hem of his coat. “Alice threw her phone into the fish tank. I figured she needed me tonight.” 

“But where are you supposed to be?” Louis’s voice was quiet. Harry nodded before smiling a bit more softly, fondly. 

“My mum and I would watch the ball drop every year from our living room.” He looked around helplessly. “But here I am. Seeing it in person instead.” 

Louis bit his bottom lip. “Did you just move here?” 

“I’ve been here a couple years. But I always used to fly home for the holidays.” 

Louis watched as Harry’s face tried valiantly not to betray his words, but the worry lines showed again and Louis knew there was more to that story. More to Harry’s story. 

“My boyfriend and I..” Louis paused, took a deep breath. “My _ex-_ boyfriend and I were supposed to come here together.” 

Harry nodded. “Looks like neither one of us should have been here tonight.” 

In an unusually bold move, Louis reached up and straightened Harry’s New Year’s hat before letting his fingertips skim Harry’s cheek on the way down. “Or maybe we were both supposed to be here tonight.” 

Harry caught Louis’s eyes for a moment before Louis found himself looking down, embarrassed and a little caught. 

“What was his name?” Harry asked. 

“Whose name?” 

Harry smiled and reached his hand out, index finger running the length of Louis’s sleeve before hooking itself with his hand. Louis met his eyes again and matched Harry’s smile.

“The countdown will start soon,” Louis whispered, but they were closer now. Close enough to hear each other even when the rest of the crowd couldn’t. 

“Do you want to go?” Harry’s breath stuttered out of him and Louis could feel it, warm and close on his lips. He shook his head. Harry laced their fingers together on both sides, rooting Louis to the spot. 

“I don’t even know you,” Louis said.

“You don’t know the new year yet either, but you’re trusting it to last, aren’t you?” 

And if it weren’t for the damn worry lines on his forehead Louis would have had a completely different response to Harry’s question. But there they were. Clear and evident and posing so many questions Louis needed to know the answer to. So he nodded again, as if under a spell. A silly spell he hopes won’t break just because midnight is approaching. 

The crowd around them began yelling out their countdown but Louis decided he wasn’t going to wait for a new year to kiss Harry Styles. So instead, with exactly six seconds until the calendars all flipped over to a new January, Louis pulled Harry in and kissed him like he trusted him. 


End file.
